dohboi wrote:Thanks for the correction, Juan.
But Three Gorges is not a complete win-win ecologically. My brother wrote his graduate thesis on how resistance to the project was a main catalyst in creating something of a Chinese environmental movement. The flooded area not only displaced hundreds of thousands of people, it also flooded unique ecological biomes.
Also, we now know that such dams actually create huge amounts of methane because of all the biological material that decomposes in anoxic conditions.
I completely agree on that, dohboi! No large scale dam is ever a complete win-win ecologically; they all cause significant environmental damage, displace innocent people, flood natural landscapes, and disrupt the flow of water and wildlife on the rivers they dam.
I remember canoeing expeditions with my grandfather as a very young child on the river Uruguay and my excitement and anticipation when I knew we were approaching the Salto Grande (big jump) rapids. Then they built Uruguay's largest dam on that spot and ruined it for the rest of my life. I remember witnessing the construction of the dam and the damage it caused. It was heartbreaking.
But, I also know that the dam and the bridge on top of it have greatly benefitted the lives of millions of Uruguayans and Argentinians since they were built. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that my country's human population would be much worse off without them, even those who were displaced to build them. In a perfect world we would never have needed to build such atrocities, but that is not the world we live in.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salto_Grande_Dam